‘Glee’: A ‘Riverdale’ Star Auditioned for the Show
Glee is arguably one of the best musical comedies to have ever existed and has left an indelible mark on pop culture. Everything was perfect, from the musical numbers to the storylines and casting, and many actors wanted in on the fun. One Riverdale star recently revealed that she auditioned for the show before hitting it big.
Lili Reinhart auditioned for Glee but lost
Lili Reinhart recently did a video interview with BuzzFeed, sharing several details about herself, but one interesting answer came when she revealed that she auditioned for Glee. Reinhart loved singing and acting at the tender age of 10, and when she turned 18, she left home to pursue acting.
However, things didn’t turn out as she had hoped, and after losing so many auditions, she thought of giving up. Reinhart said she wanted to be on Glee when asked to name the role her fans would be surprised to learn she tried out for.
“I auditioned for many a things, lost a lot of things. I auditioned for Glee,” Reinhart said. The actor didn’t expound further on the role she wanted or the period she tried out for the show, but judging by her demeanor, she may have gone for Marley or Britney.
The musical dramedy isn’t the only musical the Look Both Ways actor tried out for. Reinhart also shared that she tried her hand at Les Miserables. “I auditioned for Tom Hooper’s Les Mis for Cosette and had to fly to New York and sing in person in front of him, which was the most terrifying thing in the world,” Reinhart stated.
The star coyly added that she was grateful she lost the part because she isn’t “a classically trained singer” and “would have embarrassed” herself. Les Mis was released in 2012, and the part Reinhart eyed went to Amanda Seyfried.
Playing Betty Cooper in ‘Riverdale’
Reinhart landed the part of Betty Cooper in the CW’s Riverdale on February 9, 2016. The series is based on characters from Archie Comics and follows a murder mystery. The Lilith actor auditioned twice for the part by sending her audition tape from North Carolina before coming in to audition in person a month after.
Her role as Betty catapulted Reinhart into international stardom and helped her become a sought-after actor. However, the star’s big break almost didn’t happen. Riverdale‘s showrunner Roberto Aguirre-Sacasa told Entertainment Weekly in 2018 that he initially wanted Chilling Adventures of Sabrina star Kiernan Shipka for the part of Betty.
Aguirre-Sacasa had seen Shipka in Mad Men and was impressed by her performance in the AMC show, and he thought she would be perfect as Betty. “Kiernan was iconic in Mad Men, and I had even thought about her. I was like, ‘Oh, I wonder if she’d ever do Betty,'” the playwright revealed. Reinhart has been playing Betty since Riverdale‘s debut in January 2017, reprising her role through the final season, which is expected to air in 2023.
Reinhart hopes to take more control of her work in the industry
Reinhardt has been busy outside of her work on Riverdale. In 2020, she starred in the romantic drama Chemical Hearts earning her first executive producer credit in the movie as well. In 2021, she starred in Look Both Ways and served as the film’s executive producer.
Reinhart revealed in the BuzzFeed interview that working on Look Both Ways helped her realize that she enjoyed “being a part of projects from start to finish.” “I love being a part of everything in all aspects,” Reinhart said, calling it “a fun process.”
The 26-year-old star has a production company called Small Victory Productions, which signed a deal with Amazon Studios in 2021 to develop original film and TV content with a focus on modern and young adult content.
